Audi A4 Ignition Coil Problems

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Took my 2005+ Audi A4 in for its 55,000 mile service and got back a report that the dealer needed to replace crankcase hoses and valves since they were coming apart. This dealer job on just the hoses/valves came to near $650.

They also performed a brake fluid flush which evidently isn't part of the 55,000 service. Not sure when this should have been done - as I have my service always done at the dealer.

Now I need to go back to the dealer next week since that center Audi emblem piece on one wheel came off while driving after the service yesterday. Seems that some repair folks don't put the wheel back on correctly and damage the clips holding on that center wheel piece.

Over the past few years I had over $1200 worth of work done for faulty ignition coils (2002 1.8T Quattro-5 spd). I was also driving on a bad cat con for a few years until I could afford to get it replaced. A new mechanic told me that the cat con issue was related to the faulty ignition coils. Has anyone else had that problem? Audi did not mention this (of course) in their reimbursement initiative, but I think it is worth looking into. The cat con work also cost me over $1200. The upkeep on these Audis is astronomical. I don't want to keep paying them for their bad parts.

I bought a used audi A4 2006 with about 40k on it. It was Audi certified so it came with the 6yr/100k warranty. THANK GOD!!! Because this piece of s*** that I had for exactly 1 year now has been in the shop 9 times and I spent more time in a loaner than my actual car. First it was the valve problems that caused misfiring....this took their certified idiot technicians 4 trips back to the service for them to figure it out because problem just kept coming back. Then I took it in for normal 10k service, and right after that I smelled the oil burn. I was like ok this is normal right after they changed it, but month later I could still smell it and the low oil came on. Took it in..they kept it overnight called me next day say it's normal because where filters are in this car and with the turbo engine. Then 3 weeks later low oil came back on. I went back and screamed, and pretty much told them to keep it until the fix the s***. Well, the gasket ended up being replaced cuz it had a leak.

THen I had electrical problems that took 2 trips to the service to figure it out, and then just today, coil issue. The electric power control was just jacked, wouldnt pick up on the speed, blah blah. I call them, they say, oh yeah, Audi issued a service call to have all coils replaced. WTF? And then in 2000 miles I'm gonna have to take it in for the next 10k service? NOT!!!! The moment this piece of s*** is fixed, I am trading it in and getting another car. NEVER AUDI AGAIN!!!

I have a 2001 Audi A4 Wagon 1.8L with 95,000 miles on it. I was recently driving 2 hours to DC at about 65-70 mph and about 1.5 hours into the drive my car started shaking like I was on the rumble strips (but not). I quickly looked down at my gauges and didn't see anything out of the ordinary. All of the sudden my check engine light started flashing so I pulled over to the side of the highway and turned the car off. I got out of the car and looked under the hood, nothing seemed amiss there either. Tried to turn my car back on and it sounded like a rough idle with the car shaking a little. Turned it off and had it towed to an Audi dealership. The mechanic said he thought it sounded like a bad ignition coil, but then called back to say there isn't anything wrong with any of the coils but he couldn't figure otu what was wrong with the car.... anyone have any similar experience??

An Audi deaership mechanic who "couldn't figure out" what the problem was??? I'm not buying that. It sounds EXACTLY like the problem I had over and over and over w/ ignition coils. Take it to a different dealer. Be careful -- an independent mechanic told me the problem w/ ignition coils probably led to my cat con problem, but Audi will not admit it. I'd bet money your issue is ignition coils, and I would be very leery of an Audi mechanic who would say he could not figure out the problem.

My Audi currently is in the shop getting a new cat converter and 6 new ignition coils so yes, I have had the same issue. I become more and more disappointed with my Audi each day. I've only owned it 6 months (it's a 2004) and it's been in the shop 3 times, all separate issues!

I have spent at least $15k on my car, many unrelated issues. Twice I had the windshield wiper motor replaced at nearly $500 each time. I am throwing good money after bad, but I now have a good, trustworthy mechanic. the only reason I keep it is beccause I really want to try to get my money out of it. I would never buy another one. Audi sucks.

I am having the same issue... I am bringing my Audi A4 06 in for the 3rd time in a month to resolve the "ignition" coils. They replaced them through the recall first (and this was my 3rd set of coils) and a week later, the check engine light came on. Brought it back to the shop and they told me it wasn't the coils, and they would need some time to figure it out. They added some "additives" to the gas and said this would fix the problem. Well, 3-4 days later, the check engine light back on. Finally have the time to bring it back in... and they swear up and down it's not the IC, but the computer is reading it as an IC problem. Does this sound right? Is there another problem that would cause the same symptoms as ICs (rough idling, shaky accelerations sometimes)?

I am not a mechanic, but I find it hard to believe that it could be anything else. You probably need to find a good non-dealer mechanic who has the diagnostic tools to find your problem. That is a sticky situation, because I do not trust Audi dealers in this, but it is in their best interest to replace the coils. Also, watch out for much more expensive catalytic converter issues related to the IC. Audi is not paying for that now -- I paid $1200 for the cat con replacement! I still am having a hard time with Audi dealers who cannot figure out the problem. You need to be talking to headquarters.

I have emailed Audi's customer support and asked them to cover anyway...; I am waiting to hear their reply.It is ridiculous to ask customers to turn all papers in less than 30 days..; like we are all just waiting for Audi's recalls in our daily lives...!Audi has also a bunch of other recalls they should do but refuse to do: sunroof leaks (it is a recall on VW but not on Audi, even if it is the identical part), air suspensions in Allroads, etc...Audi is as good in car design as they are BAD in customer support and customer care !

Don't get me started. since I bought my 2002 A4 3.0L (brand new), I have spent $10,000 on repairs. That does not include the FREE repairs made under the initial warranty period which included a broken window motor on the driver's side (twice), all 6 ignition coils in 2003, left fan motor, windshield wiper motor (twice), windshield wiper linkage.

I will not go to the dealer if I can help it. They tried to convince me once that I was in dire need of new brake pads and did some very fast backpedaling after I reminded them that THEY had installed new pads 3 months earlier.

I now keep an Excel file of every repair on my car along with date and mileage.

My left bank catalytic converter failed about a year ago, along with the O2 sensors - this is the first time I've seen this linked to the ignition coils. I'd like to know more. That was an expensive repair even though it was not done by the dealer.

But I have another question - I had all the coils replaced last week at the dealer. 3 days later my check engine light came on and when I brought it back I was told that the Evap Purge Valve had failed. This seems like a real coincidence considering they had just serviced the car. Could these 2 issues be connected? It cost me $350 to get it fixed!

I guess I am not surprised that you have had some of the same repairs I have. But 2 windshield wiper motors to have failed is uncanny. I am now waiting for them to reimburse me for the $1200 I spent on ignition coils. My check engine light has been on for about 4 years, and no matter what repair they perform, it comes right back on. Ask your independent mechanic if there is a link between the IC issue and the valve. Too much of a very expensive coincidence there.

I just got my 2003 A6 Quattro 3.0 today from the dealership and they replace the coils but the engine light is still on. They said that the engine light could still be on because of my catalytic converter. They want me to pay 120.00 to be diagnosis, when its seems like the catalytic converter is affected by the coils. Does the ignition coils affect the catalytic converter? And if it does shouldn't it be part of the recall that it needs to be replace or repair by Audi?

"A note about driving the car with a failed coil pack: VWoA has told owners that driving the car may cause damage to the catalytic converter due to unused fuel contaminating the converter. There is also some speculation by B5.5 drivers that it's also possible the unused fuel will contaminate the oil on the cylinder wall and get past the rings. Thus, this may result in increased wear on the rings and cylinder wall; moreover, if the fuel enters the crank case the oil can be thinned which may lead to premature wear of bearings."

An independent mechanic told me my cat con issue was probably due to bad ic's. Audi is not taking any responsibility for this. I believe it will require another class action suit, like the timing belt. I paid $1200 for my cat con repair. My check engine light has still been on for about 4 years. One repair after another, and it is still on. (2002 A4 Quattro)

Good luck with the reimbursement. I had one of mine done by my mechanic (car was shaking so badly I didn't want to drive it to the dealer). I paid $155, which is probably half what Audi would have normally charged, and they reimbursed me $85.

One other note - my $10,000 in repairs over 8 years was primarily spent at a private, non-dealer garage. I paid $1500 for a timing belt and water pump - Audi wanted $2500. Catalytic Converter & O2 sensors $1600 vs $2000 quoted by Audi. Audi charged me $50 once to change a light bulb (30 minutes minimum labor charge). It goes on and on. I love my Audi but I hate the dealerships.

So my '02 A4 3.0 failed emissions due to a bad cat con. I had the car in Pep Boys a few months back and error codes 300/301/302/304/306 and PO432 all were present. When I asked the mechanic what needed to be done, he said we will just clear them and if the problem continues to bring it back...Well clearly the failed ignition coils did not fix themselves so here I am. Had I researched it before I would have fixed the problem then. Anyway, I called Audi regarding the Coil Recall and she said they will correct the problem at no charge, So I asked her since faulty coils and a misfiring engine cause a cat con to go bad, you will replace the cat con free of charge as well? She put me on hold, returned and said to take it to the dealer and if THEY determine the bad coils were the cause of the bad cat con they will replace it. So is there any way to prove that the coils that they have recalled caused my cat con to fail, other than the fact that cat cons fail when the engine misfires??????

The Audi dealership said to me that the catalytic converter is not a part of the recall even if it has be affected by the coils. They told me to call 1800822AUDI to talk to corporate. We all need to take this catalytic converter issue to corporate.

i bought a 2007 Audi A4 quattro, and since then I spent $10000 fixing the vehicle. I repaired the camshaft, all 4 ignition coils, valves, including the turbo booster valves, fuel valves and a blown cylinder number 2, which including a blown intake manifold, this repair cost $5000, after this repair Audi sent me a letter for the ignition coil recall. I claimed the faulty ignition coil issue was a factor in my blown cylinder (and possible camshaft issue), however a Audi rep called me (non-tech qualified) and told me audi would not reimburse me for the cylinder repair because they said it was not related to the ignition coil issues. I argued that a faulty cylinder (due to a misfire via a faulty ignition coil) created a hot spot which resulted in a major engine failure, causing a major blow out in the intake manifold and blown cylinder. This repair was just months after I repaired the camshaft disaster.

I believe this needs to be addressed the same way the timing belt issue was addressed: a class action lawsuti. I want my $1200 back for my cat con replacement. I am tired of all of us being victimized by Audi. 2007 and you are making repairs like this?! This is an outrage. I am willing to fight this. We need to go back to the same attorneys who got justice for the timing belt issue (I got a $3000.00 refund!)

This should not require proof. If cat cons fail when the engine misfires and ic failure obviously causes the engine to misfire, the issue is already proven. An attorney can give this a nice, Latin, legal term, and that is who we should be talking to. I want to pursue this -- I am going to start by trying to communicate with the attorneys who fought the timing belt issue. Audi sucks, and they should pay.

I called audi of america and they said that because my car is a 2003 with 85000 miles that its normal for the catalytic converter to go bad at this moment in time. Is that true?....Now they are saying that is it hard to prove if the coils make the catalytic converter to go bad because the converters can go bad in many different ways.

On drive home from dealer after having coil recall work done, the check engine light came on again. Turns out, both of my catalytic converters and 2 O2 sensors leading in were totally shot.

The Audi dealer told me "Audi has not let us know about any link between engine coil malfunctions (the recall) and catalytic converter failures". They proceeded to say, in very predicatable fashion, that they were not responsible for any of the repairs and gave me an outrageous quote. So I took it to my import mechanic. Total repair was $2,850 (~20% less than Audi quoted me).

I am writing a letter to AOA, but have little confidence that they will pay. Who were the attorneys on the last class action? I'm sure they are aware of this "development" but, if not, my wife is a products liability attorney (on the defense side, ironically) and I will have her reach out to them.

I sent a request to the attorneys who handled the timing belt issue a few weeks ago but have not heard from them. Apparently, it takes oire than one voice. But I do not know how to go about pressing this thing through alone. They are at http://www.pswplaw.com/CM/ClassActions/Volkswagen.aspI am hoping that others will raise their voices. Audi needs to pay for their shoddy product. I was told my 02 sensors were bad at the time I had my cat con replaced.

jiboo_2: I have a similar issue - my left catalytic converter failed in Sep-09, along with the O2 sensors. 2 months later I received the letter from Audi regarding the ignition coil recall, but the letter said not to bring the car in unless the check engine light came on. In December, one coil failed, and the car was shaking so badly that I took it to my local garage to have it fixed. Audi reimbursed my less than 50%. A couple of months ago, they started calling me, asking why I hadn't brought my car in to have all the coils replaced! did I mention that they replaced all 6 coils in 2003 as part of a "normal" maintenance?Catalytic converters should not fail. I'd be interested in a suit also.

jiboo_2: I have a similar issue - my left catalytic converter failed in Sep-09, along with the O2 sensors. 2 months later I received the letter from Audi regarding the ignition coil recall, but the letter said not to bring the car in unless the check engine light came on. In December, one coil failed, and the car was shaking so badly that I took it to my local garage to have it fixed. Audi reimbursed less than 50% of the cost, and this garage runs about 40% cheaper than the dealer. A couple of months ago, they started calling me, asking why I hadn't brought my car in to have all the coils replaced! did I mention that they replaced all 6 coils in 2003 as part of a "normal" maintenance?Catalytic converters should not fail. I'd be interested in a suit also.

Hi - while we sympathize with the issues you're experience, our Membership Agreement prohibits using the Forums to organize a lawsuit. Let's refrain from that activity, and instead focus on reporting the issue and any follow-up resolution (or non-resolution) obtained from Audi.

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